Polaris Hub to be discontinued at year-end – Paving the way for new strategic opportunities

For Koda, nothing is more important than securing the best possible agreements for its members – both now and in the future. In a rapidly evolving market, Koda has therefore, together with the two Nordic collective management organizations Teosto and Tono, decided to discontinue the joint Nordic licensing alliance, Polaris Hub.

Since 20198, the alliance has entered into licensing agreements on behalf of the three organizations – as well as Icelandic STEF – with global services including Spotify, YouTube, Meta (Facebook and Instagram), Apple Music, Tidal, SoundCloud, TikTok and others.

The decision to discontinue the licensing alliance was made jointly and reflects that the current model no longer meets market demands or aligns with the rapid global developments in the music industry. Polaris Hub will be phased out around the turn of the year 2025–2026.

Koda CEO: New solutions to secure robust licensing agreements in tomorrow’s music market

Koda has for some time been exploring the market for a more contemporary structure that can help secure the best possible agreements and terms for Koda’s members in the future. This is explained by Koda’s CEO, Gorm Arildsen.

“With the discontinuation of Polaris Hub, we are opening the door to new strategic opportunities. Koda exists to secure the best possible agreements and terms for our members. That is why we are now focusing on establishing new solutions that can support strong agreements for our members – solutions tailored to the market conditions and trends we are already seeing, and which will continue to evolve in the global and digital music market in the years ahead,” says Gorm Arildsen.

The decision to discontinue Polaris Hub reflects the growing complexity of the online music licensing market, which is increasingly dominated by the world’s largest technology companies. At the same time, music consumption continues to shift towards digital platforms, making online licensing ever more critical to ensuring payment to composers, songwriters and music publishers when their music is used.

“We value the contributions made by the employees of Polaris Hub in securing key and impactful agreements with online platforms on behalf of our members. In light of ongoing market developments, however, Polaris Hub is no longer the most suitable solution. We are therefore fully engaged in a strategic effort to future-proof our members and their rights - ensuring they are fairly compensated when their music is used and enjoyed across the globe,” says Gorm Arildsen.

Current agreements and distributions will remain in effect

All existing agreements entered into under Polaris Hub will remain in effect, and Koda’s members will therefore continue to receive royalty distributions for the use of their music on these services as usual.

At the same time, Nordic cooperation continues unchanged across several other areas – from joint communication efforts and shared policy agendas to the development of efficient systems and processes.

Agreement with NMP to be discontinued

As part of the Polaris Hub collaboration, Network of Music Partners (NMP) has handled data administration, reporting and invoicing for digital music services on behalf of the four rights organizations. This agreement will also be concluded at the turn of the year. The organizations behind Polaris Hub extend their thanks to NMP and its employees for the collaboration.